“KCSU’s Top 10 Songs Spinning This Week” is written by the KCSU Music Directors and describes the top artists that your local 90.5 FM DJs are playing this week! This article is posted weekly on Sundays and discussed on their show “KCSU Weekly Gem Countdown” which airs every Monday from 12-1 p.m. During the show, you can learn more about each musician or band before tuning in to the top 10 countdowns on Mondays, in which the music directors present to you the latest songs topping the charts and breaking down each song’s sound and feel.” 

1. Hippo Campus – Alt/Indie – (8 spins of “Boys” off of the 2022 album release “LP3”)

Hippo Campus formed in 2013, with members that include Jake Luppen, Nathan Stocker, DeCarlo Jackson, Zach Sutton and Whistler Allen. Originally from Minnesota, the indie-rock band emerged to the scene with its EP “Bashful Creatures.” According to its Spotify, “although the five-piece has been friends since middle school and put out a number of studio releases since its inception, it’s the new record, “LP3,” that’s the most honest portrait of who Hippo Campus is.”

2. Mitski – Alt/Indie – (7 spins of “Should’ve Been Me” off of the 2021 album, “Laurel Hell”)

Mitski is an indie rock singer and songwriter who was born in Japan and moved around to several countries before she finally settled in New York for college. NPR describes Mitski’s writing as “confessional and funny, boastful and self-deprecating, poetic and profane all at once.”

According to Genius, “Should’ve Been Me,” “describes one of Mitski’s relationships and the isolation she felt as a consequence of poor communication on the part of her partner. However, through the song, she also repeatedly apologizes for being emotionally unavailable and detached from her partner.” The track also explores the themes of “grief, loneliness and isolation.”

3. Ladyhawke – Pop- (6 spins of “My Love” off of the 2021 album release “Time Flies”)

According to her Spotify, Ladyhawke, also known as Phillippa “Pip” Brown, “crafts larger-than-life songs that made her one of the leading lights of the 1980s synth pop revival of the late 2000s and well into the 21st century.”

4.  Neil Frances – Electronic – (5 spins of “every day with you.” off of the 2022 album release “There is No Neil Frances”)

Neil Frances is an electronic pop duo consisting of Jordan Feller and Marc Gilfry that came together in 2016. Feller explains on their Spotify, “I was a producer first and musician/songwriter second, so I can often see when Marc’s head has exploded and then take that idea to the next step. The most fun stuff is when there are surprises and accidents. There’s a lot of benefit for both of us in that working relationship.”

“There is No Neil Frances” is the duo’s debut album with 14 tracks included. According to Earmilk, the album’s “concept follows the dreams of an insect looking for its true purpose in a utopian dreamscape.” The duo currently has over 2 million monthly listeners on Spotify.

5. Ariel Hutchins – Country – (4 spins of “Wine Won’t Work” off of the 2022 single “Wine Won’t Work”)

Ariel Hutchins is a country singer/songwriter from Texas. According to her website, “her music celebrates her West Texas heritage and embodies her love of country music past and present.” “Wine Won’t Work” was Hutchins’ first-ever single to be released and was “the first debut release by a female Texas artist to top the Texas Country Charts at number one.”

Hutchins explained to Pro Country that she was shocked her single went number one: “Quite literally it meant everything, and then the challenge became one of putting out more great, chart-topping music. I don’t focus on the charting factor really now; I just want to do right by each song in the studio because our music lineup is amazing and it’s my responsibility to deliver it all! I’m loving this ride! What a dream!”

6. BADBADNOTGOOD – Jazz – (4 spins of “Talk Meaning (ft. Terrace Martin, Brandee Younger and Arthur Verocai) off of the 2021 album, “Talk Memory”)

BADBADNOTGOOD is a jazz ensemble created by Matthew Tavares and Alexander Sowinski. According to their Spotify, the “Toronto, Ontario-based jazz ensemble … (makes) expansive music that straddles the line between ’70s soul-jazz, alternative hip-hop and experimental electronica.” The band initially gained traction by posting jazz covers of hip-hop tracks from Odd Future and MF Doom.

The group has had major success. It has recorded a live session with Tyler, The Creator, was a backing band for Frank Ocean and has done production work for Earl Sweatshirt, Danny Brown and JJ Doom. The band has over 3 million listeners on Spotify.

7. Burrito Brown – Electronic – (4 spins of “Cheezy Does It” off of their 2021 album release, “Bluewerks Vol. 3: Heat Wave”)

Burrito Brown is a mysterious artist. This low-fi electronic singer/songwriter has over 270,000 listeners on Spotify, but no website, no information about them on the internet, just a guess of who they are. Burrito Brown makes great music to have as your soundtrack to life — whether it’s studying, taking a walk or having a girls night in — their interesting and smooth beats put each listener in a trance.

8. CMAT – Pop – (4 spins of  “I Wanna Be A Cowboy, Baby!” off of the 2022 album release, “If My Wife Knew I’d Be Dead”)

CMAT, short for Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson is an Irish country/pop singer and songwriter. During an interview with NME magazine, CMAT explains her style as “Dolly Parton meets Weird Al Yankovic, mixed with Katy Perry.” So accurate. NME goes on to explain that “her velvety vocals and earworming beats compliment Katy J Pearson’s ’70s-Americana bops, while her multifaceted lyricism mirrors that of country greats such as Patsy Cline and Skeeter Davis.”

CMAT’s third single, “I Wanna Be a Cowboy, Baby!” describes the feeling of having no control over your life. CMAT explains to Genius, that the song is “mainly about urban isolation – about having all of the freedom and resources to do whatever you want but still choosing to do nothing out of deeply-embedded social anxiety and detachment from your own emotions.”

Her debut album is out now!

9. CMAT – Pop – (4 spins of “Lonely” off of the 2022 album release, “If My Wife Knew I’d Be Dead”)

CMAT is on our charts twice this week! “Lonely,” one of CMAT’s last singles before releasing her album “If My Wife Knew I’d Be Dead,” explores a feeling everyone can relate to – loneliness. CMAT explains, “I wrote this about a time when I was living in Manchester. I lived there for two years, and I think that was the peak of my problem-person period. … I would just stay in the Arndale Food Court and watch everyone just hanging out, being friends, having more money than me because I was really … broke, crying into my … Taco Bell Crunchwrap.”

10. Juna N Joey – Country – (3 spins of “Something Good To Miss” off of the 2022 single release “Something Good To Miss”)

Juna N Joey are a brother/sister country pop duo from Florida. According to their Spotify, “the duo’s popularity exploded organically by posting covers on YouTube with over 7.8 million collective views and a few viral videos (on) TikTok of 8.6 million views.” At only 17 and 19, the duo has amassed over 14,000 listeners on Spotify.

According to Total Entertainment, “‘Something Good To Miss’ is the lead single off the duo’s self-titled EP, which will be released in early June. The upbeat, hopeful tune features an infectious melody, modern production that packs a punch and Juna N Joey’s signature rich harmonies.”

The music directors can be reached at music@kcsufm.com